Belfast
/ˈbɛl.fæst/
"belfast" is a 7-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.
The verdict
“Belfast” is a regularly-used English word, ranked #8,514 in English word frequency and used as a proper noun.
- #8,514
- frequency rank, English
- 7
- letters
- 11
- tracked misspellings
- 3
- confusable pairs
According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed May 6, 2026) - The capital and largest city of Northern Ireland.
Visual similarity to commonly confused words
How many letter changes separate each confused pair (Levenshtein distance, normalized).
Source: PlainSpell confusable corpus (Wiktionary, CC BY-SA).
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | Belfast |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Proper noun |
| IPA | /ˈbɛl.fæst/ |
| Letters | 7 |
| Frequency rank | #8,514 |
| Misspellings tracked | 11 |
| Confusable pairs | 3 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Where “Belfast” sits in English frequency
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for Belfast is 7 letters long, classified as a proper noun, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈbɛl.fæst/. Corpus data places it at rank #8,514 in overall English word frequency, indicating it appears regularly in written and spoken text. Wiktionary records 17 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our generated misspelling index lists 11 likely wrong-spelling variants for Belfast, with forms such as "bbelfast", "beflast", and "belafst". Each variant is a distinct typo pattern an edit-distance generator flags, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution. It also participates in 3 confusable-pair relationships, "blast", "beast", "ballast", since the words sound or look close enough that writers reach for the wrong one mid-sentence.
Etymologically, the entry records: From Irish Béal Feirste (literally “mouth of the River Farset”). The correct English form is Belfast, spelled B-E-L-F-A-S-T.
Definition
- 1The capital and largest city of Northern Ireland.
- 2A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 3A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 4A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 5A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 6A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 7A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 8A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 9A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 10A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 11A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 12A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 13A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 14A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 15A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 16A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
- 17A place named for either the city in Northern Ireland or another place also named as such.
Etymology
From Irish Béal Feirste (literally “mouth of the River Farset”).
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: bbelfast,beflast,belafst,belfasst,belfastt,belfats,belffast,belfsat,bellfast,blefast,eblfast
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
How far each generated variant is from the correct spelling of Belfast - expressed in single-character edits (insert, delete, or swap one letter). Bigger bars stand out at a glance; a one-edit slip is the hardest to catch.
Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA); frequency ordering uses the FrequencyWords open word-frequency list (2018 English corpus, MIT). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do you spell "Belfast"?
What does "Belfast" mean?
What words are commonly confused with "Belfast"?
How do you pronounce "Belfast"?
What is the origin of the word "Belfast"?
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Using “Belfast”
The practical upshot for anyone who landed here from a spell-check.
- The one correct English spelling is B-E-L-F-A-S-T - every other letter order is a misspelling in standard orthography.
- Say it as /ˈbɛl.fæst/ (IPA); tap the speaker on the pronunciation badge to hear it where audio exists.
- Don't mix it up with “blast” - see the side-by-side comparison. Belfast vs blast
- Browse more English words and confusable pairs in the same reference. English words
Data Source
Wiktionary (via kaikki.org), licensed under CC BY-SA & GFDL. Word ordering uses an open word-frequency list; misspelling variants are generated by edit-distance from the correct headword.